Unsaid Oaths
by silrayn silverwolf
Summary: [AU]What if one of the Sanzo-ikkou was not what he seemed? What happens when victory hangs on the thread of unsaid oaths? shounen ai-yaoi 53, 83 - ah, family politics...
1. Judas kisses

**Title:** Unsaid Oaths   
**Author: **silrayn silverwolf   
**Genre:** Romance, Angst   
**Status:** Unfinished, Series   
**Spoilers:** episodes of the anime, as far as I watched, some Gaiden from the Aesthe translations, the sister thing came from my sister who read the manga (I think), she mentioned it anyway while we were watching.   
**Warning:** yaoi, very dark, AU, potential OOC, butchered lines from AXN subs, mostly are from my memory so there might be some inaccuracies... This was suppose to be a PWP but I can never write a decent Lemon so...   
**Ratings:** PG13 to R - censored version   
**Disclaimer: **Gensou Maden Saiyuki is Minekura Kazuya, Enix, etc.   
**Pairing:** Gojyo x Sanzo, Hakkai x Sanzo, implied Kougaiji x Yaone   
**Teaser:** AU, danger lies ahead when the unsaid oaths are what carry the tide of the battle... Sanzo is caught between two of his teammates in a deadly triangle... ****

**Progress Report(sort of):**

Silrayn: I like to pick on Sanzo and Hakkai, ne?   
Aya: At least, you've stopped picking on me, for a change.   
Silrayn: don't be too sure about that, I'm still working on "Foxy Affection", "Raven's Pendant", "Kitsune Ku" and "Before the Dawn".   
Aya: But he's your primary victim in this one, ne?   
Silrayn: Eh. Don't you enjoy my stories, Ayan-chan?   
Aya: @_@ *turns into a small fluffy kitsune and gnaws on Silrayn's tail*****

**Unsaid Oaths**   
SAIYUKI FANFICTION

****

**Prologue - Judas Kisses **

Sanzo woke up with a headache. Not a very unusual situation, in the past months of traveling on the road to look for his master's legacy, he had woken up in various establishments with a headache but this time was different. For one, he was lying in a large bed without his robes but clothed in his jeans and leather shirt in the center of a comfortable room, decorated tastefully in greens and browns. Another, he had no clue as to how he got there. He remembered fighting Gyokumen Koushi's men. It was an all of nothing battle. His group had come to retrieve the Sutras and prevent the revival of Gyuma Ou. Everything seemed to be going fine. They had sprung together in the middle of the room to catch their breath before coming up against the reinforcements pouring through the doors when suddenly a ki blast came from behind him and everything blacked out and here he was lying on a soft bed in luxurious surroundings. 

_If we lost shouldn't I be dead...being judged or something..._

Things just didn't add up. 

_The ki blast came from Hakkai's direction. The smiling baka must have let his guard down a moment and got blasted... If this is heaven, I'm going to go look for the fool and give him a piece of my mind..._

"Ah, you're awake, Sanzo-sama." A soprano voice drifted over to Sanzo and he looked up to see a youkai of indeterminate sex hail him. The youkai wore nondescript clothing and the insignia of the Gyuma Ou household. Sanzo tried to spring up from the bed to defensive posture but his headache prevented him from doing anything of that sort. 

_That and the fact that I'm as weak as a day-old kitten..._

"Where...?" Sanzo asked when it was evident he couldn't rise just yet. 

"You're in the Prince's harem, Sanzo-sama, I am you're body slave, Ekisu." 

"What!" 

"The Sanzo-ikkou lost and all of you were taken." 

"Hn?" 

"You were particularly lucky. The prince has taken quite a liking to you. Some were not so fortunate." 

_As if being Kougaiji's little whore was an improvement..._

"Who?" 

_So dizzy... _

If Sanzo weren't particularly indisposed, he would have shot up from the bed and confront the youkai, as it was his voice sounded edged. 

_Not that there is any use fighting against a harmless servant...if that's what he really was..._

"Son Goku-san, for one, was killed outright and turned over to Nii-san to be dissected." Ekisu said as he propped up Sanzo. He placed a small table with a tray of something hot in front of Sanzo. 

Sanzo made a half-attempt to snarl at the youkai for laying grubby paws on his person but his mind and heart wasn't in it. 

_Goku...the bakasaru's dead...? Is it what happened to Hakkai then? Or... _

A cold vise grip went around his heart so he didn't even notice the food. 

"And what about--" 

"That will be all, Ekisu." A gratingly familiar voice came from the direction of the door. 

"Kougaiji-sama...but..." Ekisu groveled. 

"That will be all... I'll leave him to your ministrations later." Kougaiji said unfazed. 

"Hai." Ekisu withdrew, leaving the blond monk with the prince. 

Sanzo glared at the redheaded prince. 

_He's so self-assured about claiming his prize...but I could've sworn that rape or forced seduction wasn't his style... It's always the ones you'll never suspect..._

"If you think to take advantage of me while I'm weak..." 

"No, I'm not going to be caught poaching in my brother's preserves. Besides, you are definitely not my type." Kougaiji retorted. 

"What--brother, since when have you had a brother?" 

"A long time in hiding, Gyokumen Koushi's son, a sly fox that one." Sanzo took note of the deep-seated loathing in Kougaiji's voice for later. 

_Is he the one that defeated us then? Kougaiji clearly hates him but then Red Boy had always been too honest for his own good. And through cunning because nothing they could have thrown at us was new or surprising..._

"So... I am to be his little toy." 

"Aa, my condolences but I really cannot do anything about it." 

"This is it then, the oh-so-honorable Prince coming to gloat over a 'helpless' enemy." 

"No, not to gloat no. You have been a credible foe. I only came to see how you were doing in this. Besides, I felt that you deserved better that you got. Falling to treachery within your own ranks..." Kougaiji said. 

_Treachery...treachery from my own...it can't be true. You're just bluffing..._

That thought sent ice through Sanzo's veins. Despite this, he made out his voice to be as uncaringly cold as possible. It might still be a trick. 

"They can't really betray me. They've sworn no oaths to me or to the mission itself." 

"Suit yourself, it was a dirty betrayal, nonetheless." The smug certainty and condescension were there, too clear to be denied. Slowly, Sanzo was starting to believe. 

_Is it Goku? Is it Hakkai? Or worse-- Tell me it wasn't... _

The thought was an anguished scream in his mind. 

"Who was it?" It was still cold but sharper this time. Sanzo wasn't quite sure if he believed this but it was getting more likely now. 

_We had been unstoppable..._

"I am not at liberty to say." Kougaiji replied. He obviously was trying not to say something. 

_Honest to the end... His damned honor must feel like a hot brand on his back...to win in such a manner..._

"So do you need someone to feed you this? Or are you strong enough to do it yourself?" Kougaiji asked. 

Sanzo just glared at the infuriating youkai. He grabbed a spoon and tried to feed himself the bowl of soup. Even with his hands shaking, he managed to get a spoonful of it into his mouth. Well, most of the spoonful. He did splash some onto him. It proved to be chowder from a little village some months ago. He remembered eating the same thing with as much enjoyment as he permitted himself. 

_How could they know that unless a traitor is providing them with information? Don't think of that--_

Sanzo turned his thoughts to something more immediate. The humiliation he was currently facing needed to be endured until he could find a way to escape. He steeled himself and lifted the spoon to his mouth again. 

"You're enjoying this aren't you?" Sanzo gritted his teeth as he tried and failed to get another spoonful in his mouth. 

"No, I thought it would be less mortifying if I was the one to see you in this state rather than some nameless servant. If you can't even lift a spoon, I think you need to be checked out first before you do something foolish. Doctor Nii checked you out but I don't trust that pervert anymore than I can throw this Castle. Yaone..." Kougaiji plucked the spoon out of the irate blond's hand and got the table out of the way. 

Sanzo glared at the redhead but otherwise made no protest. 

_This is all I need, more humiliation..._

*** 

"It's just a minor concussion, nothing to worry about. Are you quite settled, Sanzo-san?" Yaone asked. She had gotten him checked out in a minimum of fuss. She didn't even need to get him undressed. A good thing since Kougaiji hovered possessively over her. 

"Yes, whatever you gave me, it did the trick." Sanzo replied. He wasn't dizzy anymore though his stomach still roiled a bit. His strength hadn't come back yet. He said it mainly to get her to shut up. 

_She's as bad as Hakkai...can it be Hakkai that betrayed us? No, don't dwell on that. I suppose it will be revealed in time or not... It is not my concern anymore... _

It was hard to let go. Disinvolvement wasn't coming easy, to reject all the emotional baggage the past brought. 

_When there's nothing I can seem to do about the present or the future... Who am I now who failed my charge... Koryu? Sanzo, no longer, name lost to fate..._

It was easier to dwell on better days when he had the illusion of being free. 

_Baka, don't sell yourself short yet..._

"When will I regain my full strength?" 

"Sanzo, you have to know that you're wearing a collar will prevent you from using your strength against anyone in the royal house." Kougaiji replied before Yaone could answer. 

_Shit!_

"You know me too well." It was definitely not a compliment. 

"Aa. Tame as a wild cat. I don't know what he gains by trying to win you like this." Kougaiji agreed. 

"Ano..." Yaone said, interrupting their conversation. 

"Hai, Yaone-chan, I won't try to keep your patient from his meal or his rest." 

"Rest well, Sanzo-san." Yaone's cheeks were still blushing from the nickname Kougaiji had bestowed on her. It was plain how the affection between them ran. 

_Suspicions confirmed. Something else to take note of, if I can find to use such things to my advantage..._

"Be careful of what you speak of to anyone around here. Politics are deadly." Kougaiji warned. 

"Why are you telling me this?" 

"Because you have been a worthy enemy as I have said. I had wished that we had met in honest combat that last time but...it was out of my hands. Nor do I think this is a good way of welcoming someone into the family." 

"Hn." It was all Sanzo could say to that. 

"You might as well know that Ekisu's an eunuch. My brother will not have anyone spend a long time around you without additional surety." The contempt was still there in full force. 

_From the looks of it, he doesn't care for my situation... Still the honorable fool, maybe... Not yet I suppose, fool in some ways but not so foolish as to give me an opening to exploit..._

With that, Kougaiji and Yaone left Sanzo with his thoughts. 

Alone at last, Sanzo brooded. The finality of it crashed on his mind. It was something that he had been putting off for since he had awoken. The absence of the Evil Sutra on his shoulders a tangible accusation. 

_I failed you, Master. I failed and lost everything as a consequence. I have not been vigilant enough... I am not worthy of the name you gave me but what am I if I am not Genjo Sanzo? Koryu is long gone in the bloody road I have trod to regain what I have lost...yet... Sanzo protect the Sutras... I have failed in my duty. Worse yet, I have failed to die. At least in death, I might have been absolved in responsibility... That is something I must do then...but when there is life, there is hope... Maybe, I will keep the name and take what is mine by right back... or maybe, I choose to live out of cowardice, live my life as some youkai prince's toy... _

*** 

Two days passed by without so much as a visit from Sanzo's new "master". All the while, Ekisu fussed over his appearance as if every hair out of place was an offense against the gods. 

"There's someone to see you, Sanzo-sama." 

"Your 'master'?" 

"No someone else, your former teammate." 

"Let him in." 

"Sanzo-sama?" An insolent voice asked me as the owner came to the door. Red eyes blankly stared at Sanzo. 

"Gojyo." Sanzo replied flatly. 

_He could be our traitor... _

As much as Sanzo wanted to believe otherwise, the half-youkai's survival argued for such a contingency. 

_Was he just playing with me? With us?_

Sanzo wondered if he had been stupid enough to sleep with an enemy spy. 

"How are you, bouzu?" Gojyo asked, sitting beside Sanzo on the chair by the bed. Sanzo still had the shadow of the headache and wasn't up to getting out of bed yet. 

_It's almost like the old days...except Hakkai isn't the one hovering around like a mother hen... I swear he fussed over me twice as much as he did over the others... What are you doing? Thinking of them as the "good old days"? You're still here...and there's a traitor to punish..._

The blond monk still refused to give up. 

_Besides, they weren't that good, part of them were false..._

"Quite well and you?" Sanzo asked warily. He could see that Gojyo was also wearing a jeweled collar. It was adorned with a ruby as his was an amethyst. 

_But it could be a ploy..._

Kougaiji's warning was still very much in his mind. 

_Besides, I could hardly intimate that anything else was between us but comradely feeling...not when this mysterious youkai prince has me under lock and key... _

Sanzo was well aware of Ekisu hovering in the background. 

_Guarding his master's "interests"..._

"Okay, I guess. Dokugakuji spoke out for me." 

Alarm bells rang in Sanzo's mind. 

_Isn't he Kougaiji's second? The tall brawny guy..._

"Dokugakuji, why would he do that?" Sanzo asked carefully. 

" 'Coz he used to be Sha Jien, my brother." 

_Oh...so did you betray us because of brotherly feeling..._

"Have you seen Hakkai?" Sanzo asked. It was safer than all the other thoughts that were running through his mind. 

"I don't know. When I woke up, I was in a strange room without you guys. Doku told me that we'd lost, that I gotta to wear this collar from now on. I even gotta a 'discreet youkai escort' every time I go outta my assigned quarters." 

"At least, you're allowed out your quarters. I haven't been allowed out of this suite." 

"This suite's mighty fine for a prisoner." Wariness was in Gojyo's eyes. 

_Maybe it wasn't him. He may have not betrayed me after all..._

"Because it's the harem version. Some youkai prince we've never seen 'owns' me now." 

"Oh?" The slight tightening of the jaw and the tick at the edge of his eyes warned Sanzo that his erstwhile lover wasn't taking this very well. 

_Baka. If we're to escape from here...we must keep a cool head..._

"Aa. But he has yet to put an appearance." Sanzo said, seeing that this soothed Gojyo. 

_Baka kappa. Hotheaded... Besides, you don't own me... We just slept together remember?_

"Excuse me, Gojyo-san but you must leave Sanzo-sama now." 

"Why, Ekisu?" Sanzo asked. 

"Because the master is..." 

"Nonsense, Ekisu. I'm sure there is no need for Gojyo to leave just yet. After all, we were friends." Hakkai said cheerfully, interrupting the servant. 

The green-eyed youkai wasn't wearing limiters. His youkai physique rippled with muscle. He wore his usual outfit modified to this build. He wasn't wearing his monocle. Hakuryu sat still on his shoulder. 

"Hakkai?" 

"Hai." 

"What game are you playing at?" It was a commanding tone. For that instant, Sanzo was purely himself and without doubt. The tone was the one he used talking back at the rest of the Sanzo-ikkou. 

"No game. I trust that Yaone treated you for injuries?" Hakkai said, calmly smiling his sweet smile. 

"Hakkai, old buddy, what's wrong with you? Zero Wave getting to you?" 

Something niggled at Sanzo's mind. 

_What was it? _

The sudden realization floored Sanzo where he stood. 

_He's not wearing a collar..._

An icy shiver of certainty and anger ran down Sanzo's spine. 

"I'm very sane but thank you, Gojyo." 

"Are you a prisoner, too?" 

That was the kappa, dense as ever. Sanzo deduced that it was Hakkai who betrayed them. Mild seeming Hakkai sold them out. It remains to ask... 

"Why?" 

"I'm sure my brother's told you at least part of the reason." 

"Your brother! You only had a sister..." Gojyo said, evidently the idiot was less informed than Sanzo was. 

"Aa. So what is your real name then? It certainly isn't Cho Hakkai or Gonou." Sanzo asked back, insinuatingly. He had only put it together when Hakkai had mentioned his brother. 

_So Gyokumen Koushi's fox of a son had been with us all along... A viper at the heart of our strength..._

"Oh, I've decided to keep the name Hakkai. You had somewhat in the giving of it, after all." Hakkai's eyes sparked slightly as they looked over Sanzo. 

"Sanzo...Hakkai...what's going on?" 

"Cho, whatever his real name is, is the son of Gyokumen Koushi." Sanzo refused to call the youkai that stood before him by the name the animal chose. 

"Shit! Kougaiji's stepmother and boss lady?" Gojyo exclaimed. He went into defensive posture. 

Sanzo just looked on. He knew that there was no way they could fight the traitor. 

_Not with the collars... And not when he knows us too well..._

Hakkai had proven repeatedly in their encounters with youkai that he was quite a strategist. 

"Aa, that's my mother but I hope we can still be friends." 

Gojyo looked utterly stunned at this. Nonetheless, he charged at Hakkai or at least tried to. The moment he got off the chair, Sanzo noted that the ruby glowed like a tiny sun and suddenly the half-youkai slumped unconscious into Hakkai's waiting arms. 

"As I expected, Ekisu, please take my redheaded friend back to his quarters. Make sure that nothing harms him, ne?" The tone was the same pleasant one that the youkai always used. There was also the same undercurrent of concern. 

_As if he cared for us...but he had Goku killed... He betrayed us..._

Unexpected, Sanzo felt a sharp stab of hurt at this revelation. 

_What are you thinking, baka? He swore no oaths to you...any of you..._

"Hai, Hakkai-sama, rest assured that I will take good care him." Ekisu reached out his arms to receive the knocked out redhead. 

"Good, Ekisu." 

At that, Ekisu was out in a flash. 

"Now then, we're all alone, Sanzo." Hakkai ignored the chair and sat on the edge of the bed. 

"What of it?" 

"Aren't you going to ask me why I betrayed you?" 

"No." 

"About why you are here?" 

_Damned youkai and his mind games..._

"No." 

"So you have no questions at all?" 

"Aa." 

"Good." Hakkai said, leaning in to fiddle with a lock of blond hair. His finger began to trace the curved line of Sanzo's jaw. 

Sanzo refused to obey the impulse to move away from the brunet. 

_I'm not going to show any weakness, damned it! _

Against Sanzo's will, his pulse speeded up. His heart pounded loudly in time to the throbbing of his head. 

_It's just lust you fool...you've certainly felt it enough when you were with Gojyo..._

"I think I'm going to heal your headache now." Hakkai said, his healing ki washing over Sanzo. 

"How'd you know I have a headache?" Sanzo said, startled into asking the question. 

_Does he know as so well that?_

"You got this little frown knitting in your forehead. I'm the healer remember." 

"Why do you care? Your little pet feeling a little off..." 

_Sly bastard, wanting me in your power did you... Genjo Sanzo of the Sanzo-ikkou that you've been following, now, just a pet to you..._

"I always did." 

"Hn." It was a contemptuous sound. Sanzo didn't need. 

"You can say what you like. I did. I almost wish it didn't have to end..." 

"Hn." 

_Really now...and why should it have to...if you'd let us defeat your relatives and their lackeys..._

"But it had to." The tone hardened. 

"Hn." 

_Loyalty to your bitch-mother to the end..._

"Because the person I was with the Sanzo-ikkou could never have what I _wanted_." 

"Hn, you also want to revive Gyuma Ou." 

_For the power it would grant you...like mother like son, ne?_

"Not really. My mother could go to hell with him for all I care. Did it even occur to you that I wanted something else? Something another in the team had. That was why Goku had to die..." 

_Likely story...what did that baka saru have that you could want? Lame excuses don't work on me... _

"And what was it?" Sanzo smirked his skepticism. 

"You." Hakkai leaned in to kiss Sanzo on the lips. 

For once in Sanzo's life, he found himself without words. He just sat there and let it happen. 

_This is one fucked up situation... _****

**~ TBC ~** ****

**Author's Notes:**

- The last line is also silrayn's comment on the situation. 

- There is no "action" in this chapter, nothing to make a second version of yet. 

- For those who've read my stuff before, this is recognizably an AU of my usual style. It's kind of similar to "Dark Side of the Mirror" but not the same. Boldly going where no Saiyuki fanfic (at least that I've ever seen) has gone before...(Star Trek bastardization) Not a necessarily a good thing, but well... 

- Hakkai fans don't murder me...Meep!   
  
  



	2. As in heaven

**Unsaid Oaths**

GENSOUMADEN SAIYUKI 

**Part 1 - As In Heaven…**

"Ah, Konzen, you always had the knack for getting yourself in the most interesting tangles…" Kanzeon Bosatsu said, she sat on her throne with her legs crossed, one hand on the arm of her chair and the other playing with a lotus blossom. She looked utterly serene with her flowing black hair and flowing white robes. 

"Kanzeon-sama, aren't we going to intervene? I mean are we supposed to…" Jiroshin said, the gray-haired retainer looked as frazzled and concerned as ever. Kanzeon privately thought that he was born a worrier. 

_Ah, good old Jiroshin, can't you see that mortals can take care of their own affairs without intervention from the gods? We gave them free will to determine their own fates…because they are capable of that…_

"If the Emperor has decided to sit back and watch the chaos of Gyumao's rule, why should we? They have not even replaced Homura Taishin as Fighting God." 

"You can always…" 

"No, as I've said the gods are here to witness not to intervene. Besides, why should I? When the events down there are so interesting." 

"Kanzeon-sama!" Jiroshin looked outraged. 

"Konzen brought it on himself, this too was started five hundred years ago. He is so blind, then, and being reborn hadn't changed that." Kanzeon said. She looked into deep into the center of the flower, unseeing, her eyes looking back into that forgotten time. 

_So oblivious, I called you a child and a child still you are…one word of affection…one caress… and was he so hard to love? You had been friends practically ever since you could talk… You surprised me when you seem to give your heart to someone so different than you…_

_Very entertaining…in its own way but this drama is getting old…_

*** 

_In Heaven, about 500 years ago..._

Tenpo paced about as he decided what to say. He was having a hard time finding the words for someone who was known for being so clever. 

_It's hard…and this is hardly a routine situation… How does one tell a childhood friend that you want more than friendship from him?_

He had been waiting for the chance to tell the blond god. The other had been much mellower lately, so that he no longer had that many qualms about being rejected. The moment never did seem right though. 

_It was also hardly characteristic of me to be this hesitant…_

Though gods were a patient sort and did think out their actions before carrying them out, Tenpo had a streak of passion in him especially when things like this was concerned. 

"Ten-chan, I'm here!" 

"Aa, Goku." Tenpo said, smiling fondly at the child. 

_Ah, thinking of the devil or nearly so..._

The little itan was the reason the Marshal felt that Konzen could be his someday. He could still see that day, a gleaming bright jewel in his memory… 

*** 

"...And look how lively things are around here now" Tenpo said absently. It was true, as far as he can tell. Konzen looked more animated than he'd ever seen him. Color infused the smooth white skin that made the blond god look as if he was cast in marble. The boredom and anger was still there but they were less dominant in that lovely face. Konzen looked alive for once. There was life in those amethystine eyes, making them glow entrancingly. He was preoccupied with the lovely sight that he barely corrected Konzen's new adoptee tried to call him uncle. He made small talk as he tried to figure out. 

_Goku certainly seems good for Konzen...even if my old playmate seems a bit less enthusiastic about him... I can tell that there's some form of affection there..._

"Please call me Ten-chan." Tenpo said easily. 

_One way to win him over would be to win his charge...after all Goku is the one who made this change in him...not that Goku isn't winsome all by himself..._

Tenpo could find it in his heart to warm up to young one. 

_He is so innocent… Even Konzen's not that hardhearted enough to be immune to such innocence… If I hang around long enough with them, maybe I can take advantage of the crack in his armor…and in time…in time, he'll care for me, too…_

Hope began to bloom in Tenpo's heart. He had been admiring his blond playmate since they were quite young, almost children really, but he never saw any sign that the other could care for any thing, much less any _one_. 

_This maybe my chance…my only chance…_

And Heaven knows, Tenpo Gensui was not one to squander chances no matter how small. 

"You've got someone like that in your army, right--someone who keeps you busy?" Konzen said suddenly. 

"Oh yes, I do But he's a lot bigger than this kid." Tenpo said, rather surprised that Konzen even noticed. 

"Name of Kenren or something…" 

_And he knows his name, too…_

Tenpo nearly missed Konzen's next words. 

"…he's a better fighter…so called fighter gods…" 

_I hope he's not thinking…I know that there are rumors of me and Kenren…_

"He's an individualist--" Tenpo quickly reeled off the reasons he had taken on the man. Kenren was street smart and brash. The redhead made a good friend besides a good ally for what Tenpo planned. He didn't want to lose the man but what Konzen thought was…important… 

_There that should be enough I suppose…_

Tenpo held his breath and waited for the ax to fall. 

"I hear the upper command of the army are wary of him." Konzen said speculatively. The interest in the voice was detached not at all jealous. 

"Aa…" Tenpo began to explain and soon found himself enmeshed despite of his real intention in explaining the follies of High Command to Konzen. 

_There will be other times…sometimes I wonder how he can be so blind and cynical at the same time…but that's part of his charm I suppose…_

*** 

The time never came for Tenpo kept finding reasons why he shouldn't tell the object of his secret admiration. 

_I don't want to lose what we have now. If he rejects me…it might never be the same… Right now he doesn't even know of it… The rumors of me and Kenren would also ensure that he'll never guess it…so I can have it for always…unsullied and unchanged…_

_But, face it, do you want it to remain the same? Never to have his love? To never even take the chance to win him?_

_I am being a coward…_

Tenpo steeled his resolve. I'm going to tell him today. 

"Goku…" Tenpo trailed off. 

"Ne, Ten-chan?" Goku looked up from where he was reading manga. 

"Is Konzen alone today?" 

"He's always alone, Ten-chan. He's doing those boring papers again." 

_I'll see if I can change that…he is all too alone except for you…_

Tenpo took a deep breath and continued before he lost his nerve. 

"Arigatou, Goku. Would you stay here for a while? I need to go out for a moment." Tenpo asked. 

"Hai." Goku replied absently. 

*** 

"Tenpo, I thought Goku had gone to visit you." Konzen said as he looked up from a pile of documents he was reading. 

"Aa, he came over to read some more manga." 

"Then why are you here, aren't you afraid that he'll make a mess of you library." 

"More of a mess you mean. No, he's rather well behaved in there." Tenpo chuckled, amused despite the situation. 

_Very few people could say that about Goku…the numerous times he'd sneaked into the main palace. He'd gotten in trouble with the people there quite from what I hear from Kenren…_

"But what are you doing here?" Konzen asked. He didn't stop what he was doing and continued to hold the paper in front of him. 

It was such a familiar thing that they've done so many times. However, this time, it somehow lacked the usual charm. The casual trust Konzen gave him by ignoring him was something precious to him but… 

_He's still ignoring me…today of all days when I'm going to profess my undying…affection for him…_

Tenpo didn't want to make it real by naming it prematurely. 

_If Konzen doesn't feel the same…_

"Konzen, could you put that down and look at me?" Tenpo asked, politely as always. 

"What is it?" Konzen asked, irritation more out of habit than anything else. 

" I need to tell l you something important and I want to see your face when I say it." 

"Oh, all right. Give me a moment." Konzen said, as he laid down the piece of paper on his desk. 

_Now's the moment… Come on, it's your moment…come on…_

"What is it?" Konzen asked, the irritation returned as the moment lengthened without a word from Tenpo. 

"I--I--" Tenpo stuttered under the baleful purple glare. 

"What?" 

The indifferent tone was what broke through his reluctance. Tenpo leaned in and put his lips on the blond god's. 

Konzen's mouth was warm and sweet and heady like the wine that Kenren loved. A taste he could never get enough of. It was a long moment before he _realized_. Realized that Konzen wasn't responding. The blond was remaining like a cold marble statue in his arms. True, the cherry lips were apart letting him do whatever he wished but it was more of letting him in rather than really welcoming him. The purple eyes stared at him without feeling. Faced with this non-response, Tenpo faltered. 

"Konzen, I..." 

"What the hell was that all about?" Konzen asked, filling the silence with the indignant words. However, the blond god seemed too startled to put much heat into them. 

"I wanted to ask you if you would be my lover. I...always felt some affection towards you." Tenpo stuttered. 

"What about Kenren? Aren't you 'married' to him?" 

"That's what everyone thinks. You know as well as I do that the rumors around this place…" 

"Aa." It came out evenly. 

"Is that all you can say?" Tenpo asked, his heart pounded loudly in his ears. 

_Why doesn't he react…say something…_

"What do you want me to say, Tenpo? We're friends. I never thought more of you than that." 

"Nothing more. I understand…" Tenpo said, turning on his heel and fled the room. 

_I knew it…he doesn't want anything other than friendship…and now I've made a fool of myself…_

*** 

"Then, he kissed me...are you listening to me?" Konzen asked. He was lying by his current lover, narrating the whole incident to the man. He was being ignored. 

In a way, he had been relieved that the brunet had made a play for him. His friend's supposed relationship to Kenren worried him to no end since he'd heard of it but being who he was, he didn't asked the other man about it. 

_My pride…would've been too much to ask… Besides, this doesn't mean that much…_

"Kenren?" Konzen asked, irately. 

_It wouldn't harm to see that he take it seriously considering his superior officer tried to make a pass at his lover…_

The blond god thought that he'd merit as much consideration as that. Even if their relationship was only sex, the man should feel some territoriality over him. 

"So what do you propose I do about it?" Kenren drawled, finally. The redheaded god's hands were lazily tracing imaginary spirals on Sanzo's body, going lower and lower… 

Irritation took second place to the sensations the touch was arousing. 

"Kenren…" Konzen gasped. After that, he no longer had room to think of anything else. 

*** 

Kenren looked down on his sleeping lover and marveled at the man's perfection. In the moonlight, Konzen looked very much the god. Silky blond hair cascaded over the pillows. Skin glowed softly like alabaster. 

_So lovely, I don't know why you're with me… I'm loud and rash, not at all like you…careful as a cat and just as finicky…_

Kenren wasn't blind. There were a lot of longing looks thrown at the man's way. It wasn't just Tenpo, though the Marshal had been one of the more serious contenders. 

_I can see both of you together so easily… You two seem to fit each other's personalities… You don't fight with him as much as you do me… Why me?_

_Not that I'm complaining…but…we don't make that much sense…_

There was no logical explanation for Konzen's choice. Kenren had thought that the blond would choose Tenpo Gensui as soon as the Marshal had found the guts to confess his feelings. They had a longer history together. They were cuter together. They had that silent understanding that Kenren couldn't fathom. But somehow… 

_Somehow…he chose me… Why? For whatever the reason…Shit!_

It was time to go. He could continue these musings elsewhere. It would cause no end of gossip if he were to be found in these quarters. It was something he and Konzen had been careful of. Kenren sneaked out of his quarters well after the time where people were up and about. His men who were quartered in the same barracks could be trusted to keep their mouth shut. 

_Now we have more reason to keep the secret…_

They'd keep it so secret that everyone gossiped about Kenren and Tenpo instead, since the brunet was forever dragging Kenren off to discussions of what was happening in the military. Something the blond god was not aware of. Kenren was almost sure that the Marshall was purposely keeping his friend free from the political maneuverings involved. 

_He's very protective of Konzen, though he says that he's just doing it because Konzen's not in the military and couldn't be bothered with it… Bullshit!_

Kenren knew real affection when he saw it. "His" Marshal had a thing for the blond for the longest of time. 

_Now that he's gotten it into the open, we have to be more careful than we already have been…_

Kenren was very sure that Tenpo wouldn't keep his infamous cool if he'd learned that his redheaded friend had gone off with his crush. Kenren knew his superior officer well and despite the cool way the Marshal sized up his enemies, the man had a temper. 

_It wasn't as if I had done it intentionally…but well…_

Kenren didn't know, couldn't have known, really, that Tenpo had been referring to the blond god that day, or that the brunet had harbored that much affection for the man. 

_How were I to guess? That conversation was surely innocuous enough…_

He pulled his breeches, absently; barely noting that he got it pulled up wrong side up. His mind too busy on a day under sakura trees… 

*** 

"...Kenren, Did you ever feel so bored you might as well be dead?" Tenpo asked Kenren, one fine day, under the cherry trees of Heaven. 

_Me, bored? Where did he get that idea? I find my own entertainment..._

His friend always did have the strangest ideas. 

"Hm? Why're you asking?" Kenren asked back still lolling about in the effervescent warmth of sake and sunlight. 

It was too good a day to be wound up about Tenpo's philosophical discussions. 

"I know someone who's never loved flowers, or touched another person, or ever drunk wine 

He always looks mad about something." Tenpo added. 

"Hmm, I'd say he's not worth bothering with." Kenren drawled back lazily enough but his interest was piqued. 

_How could a man live like that? I can't imagine anyone living like that... I wonder who it is..._

*** 

Kenren removed his breeches to put them on right, reaching for his belt as the memories continued to flash through his mind's eye. 

He had wondered about who Tenpo had been referring to but hadn't the time to pursue it, had no real plans of pursuing it. He was satisfied between the pursuit of pleasure and his duties to the Western Army. Then, he met Konzen… 

_He sure spiced up a boring day…_

*** 

_Hohum, who is he to talk of subduing demons when he doesn't even try to go down there to fight… He doesn't know anything…_

Kenren had been thinking of nothing in particular, fiddling about, when he saw his friend and the little itan in trouble with some of the lower soldiers in the Army. Having nothing better to do than listen to the old geezer's blustery speech, he decided to join in the fun. The speech was so dull, anyway, that it threatened to put him to sleep. He kicked the one who held the monkey in the knee and started a repartee with Tenpo who seemed all game for it. That not being enough, he challenged every one bearing a grudge against him. He was having fun at punching out the idiots when he heard a strident voice called out the monkey's name. 

Kenren looked up to see this vision of loveliness charging through the crowd. 

Golden pony tail flickering from behind in irritation but hair and robe unflappably in place. The blond's violet eyes blazed with his irritation. 

_Ohh-hh, so that's the famous...Konzen Douji…_

Kenren realized that he had uttered the thought out loud and shut his mouth before he could manage to say something more embarrassing. He'd heard of Konzen Douji before. Gossip about the blond was familiar fare in some of Heaven's circles. He was considered the epitome of a god in looks but no one had yet to melt the icy façade. Some compared the god to an ice-sculpture, beautiful to look at but cold to touch. Others, out of sheer envy, had started rumors of deviant tastes, the most recent being about his young itan ward. 

"Now, now, o-niisan, Kids are the wind's children- it's natural for them to play." Kenren said, trying to placate the blond by putting his arm over the man's shoulders or so he told himself. Rumors hadn't exaggerated the man's beauty. 

_Jeez, even if he looks like he's going to explode…he still looks absolutely gorgeous!_

"Get your hands off me! Who the hell are you?" Konzen asked. He was not the least placated. Purple eyes flashing seductively with rage. 

"Abarenbou Shougun." Kenren punned away as he tried to push away a sudden flutter of desire. 

"You're General Kenren." Konzen retorted, coldly. 

That shut him up. 

*** 

_It certainly shocked me…_

Kenren got his tunic on then his belt. He had never thought that the blond god would be interested enough to know the name of a lowly taisho. 

_He never struck me as the type to keep up with matters that didn't concern his duties or his small circle of relations and friends…_

Kenren certainly never met the blond god before, much less been privileged enough to talk to him, much less count as a friend. 

_I never thought we'd get very far either…_

He had always been getting on the blond's nerves. That first meeting led off to him ticking the man off by breaking a window. They never got together without fighting unless they were having sex… 

_I can't see any reason at all…to why we were still together…_

It made no sense. _They _made no sense but here they were… 

Blankets rustled as Konzen shifted position. It took Kenren out of his musings long enough to remind him that he should have been out of the room a half hour ago. 

_Better take my thoughts elsewhere… I can think in my room as well as here…_

He finally fumbled on his tunic and his belt on and sneaked out into the deserted corridor. A couple of rooms away, he resumed his musings. 

_Why should he pick me when he could choose almost anyone? Not Tenpo, if he didn't quite fancy doing it with a childhood friend… There are folks congenial enough and not out to get him just for his position…_

"Kenren? What are doing here at this time of the night?" Tenpo's hushed voice echoed in the empty hallway that they were in. Kenren nearly jumped at the sound so lost he was in thought. 

_Oh shit…and I was just thinking that he shouldn't know about us…_

Kenren couldn't remember how long he'd left Konzen's quarters. It seemed like it was only seconds before... 

**~TBC~**

**Author's Notes:**

Most conversations in this chapter were taken from Jean's Gaiden Saiyuki translations at Aetheticism.net. The rest is my imagination at work. 

Sorry, if the chapter isn't what you, folks, were expecting. Do you guys think Tenpo should catch Kenren? BWHAHAHA! 

I think I've been watching too much telenovelas (soap operas). The ending seemed reminiscent of the ending of the yesterday's (April 5, 2003) episode of "Daniela", where the enraged mistress goes to the wedding of the guy. My work mates love soaps and since we work in an appliance store…well, I've gotten an overdose of morning and afternoon soaps. Current favorites at work are "Daniela", "Maria Belen" and "Angela", all South American imports. ^^ 

At least 2 more fic updates are slated for this week. Hopefully they all fall through, stories for update: 

1) "Foxy Affection" - chapter 3 - I've had enough material for another chapter for weeks already but was just too uninspired to arrange them 

2) "Raven's Pendant" - Had a sudden inspiration, trying to make it last long enough to finish a chapter. 

3) "In Season" - still lost at the lemon but trying… 


	3. A snake in Eden

**Part 2 - The snake in ****Eden******

"Kenren? What are you doing here at this time of the night?"  Tenpo asked.  

_Not that I have any reason to be here either but well…_

*******

Tenpo hadn't been able to think of anything else since talking to Konzen.  The words echoed in his mind so that there was no room for thought. 

_What do you want me to say, Tenpo?  We're friends…we're friends…_

Tenpo flipped the page of the book, unseeing.

_I never thought more of you than that..._

 ****

He threw down the book with a curse.

_Never more of you than that…_

He stood up, looked out of the window and felt a vague surprise that night had fallen.

_I have been here that long?_

It seemed only a few seconds since he had heard Konzen's rejection, just moments since he heard his hopes shattered.  Suddenly, the room seemed so confining.  He stood up and got out of his rooms, absently taking the corridor out of the barracks and into the palace gardens.

_Now, now, don't be so melodramatic…you'll get over this…_  

But it didn't feel that way.

_Not now, not ever…?_

Tenpo couldn't remember when he had started to feel something for Konzen. 

_It seemed like forever._

He had taken their friendship and closeness for granted.  Now that he thought of it…

_I always thought that if he'd open up to someone, it would be me…  I always thought I'd be the closest person to him…  And that now that we've grown up…_

He knew it wasn't logical but he felt betrayed. 

_There weren't any promises but… I always thought we were more than friends… _

_Did you even know what I was offering you, Konzen?_

Tok…tok…

The noise rudely awakened Tenpo from his musings.

_Steps…_

Tenpo quickly looked around him to get his bearings.  Unconsciously, his feet had taken him to the Goddess of Mercy's palace.

_And leading to Konzen's rooms too…_

He looked forward just in time to meet a startled Kenren.

***

And so here they were…

"Well, I was just passing by."  Kenren mumbled.

"In Kanzeon Bosatsu's palace? I think not."  

_And smelling strongly of sex?  Not to mention the reversed shirt and the topsy-turvy belt?  Really, Kenren…_

"Okay, I was with my current lover; she serves the Goddess, see…"  Kenren further mumbled.

_I'm not interested in any of his sexual escapades…_

Tenpo was about to tell his friend off but felt the long day of emotional turmoil catching up to him.   He felt himself reeling from exhaustion and caught himself just in time before he fell off his feet.

Kenren looked at him with concern.

"Never mind, I don't need to know the sordid details."  Tenpo said tiredly.     

_There will also be enough time to ask Konzen later…in a decent hour for visiting…_

***

Kenren nearly sighed when Tenpo turned to go. He knew that his friend was quite sharp and it was possible that the Marshal would guess why he was in this part of the Goddess' Palace at this time of the night. 

_And just as soon as he's been rejected… I wouldn't count my chances with a jealously angry Tenpo after me…_

Tenpo appeared to be cool and levelheaded but Kenren knew better.  The mild seeming man had a temper to match a wild cat from "Down there".

_Me and Konzen have to tell him sometime later when he's gotten used to it somewhat…_

That was assuming that Tenpo could ever get used to Konzen never becoming his.

_He looks really upset…_

Kenren had never seen Tenpo this upset before in his life.  Even when Litouten had usurped Tenpo's prerogative by sacking Kenren did the man look as upset.  

_That look on his face…it doesn't look like it's going to go away…ever…_

Kenren knew that he'd better watch his back if it came to that.  

_And we go to missions all the time…  _

It would be so easy to arrange for some accident.  The Western Army went out to subdue demons all the time.  

_A less than full charge of tranquilizer in the darts… Hell, a slight hesitation between firing and I'd be a goner… _

Gods can be killed, too.  

_I'd better watch out for myself…maybe it's best to give Konzen up…_  __

Practicality as well as his conscience prodded him. 

_Tenpo looks pretty beat…  He really does care for him.  And what is Konzen to you so that you should keep him from Tenpo?  Just a convenient bedmate… _

Still, Kenren was stubborn in his own way.  _Besides…_

_Konzen chose me not him…  It's Konzen's choice anyhow…_

_Yeah, keep telling yourself that, Kenren…_

***

"What the hell were you trying to pull, Tenpo?"  Kenren asked as they mulled over their wine up in Tenpo's quarters.  The wine was a welcome respite after a mission to subdue youkai Down Below and Kenren needed that respite more than ever after Tenpo's hair-raising behavior in this one.  

_What was he thinking?  _

Again, that familiar phrase repeated itself in his mind as it did when Konzen had rejected Tenpo.

_Gods can be killed too…_   

This time the thought held not apprehension but guilt.  

Was just a fortnight ago? 

Tenpo had changed so much then.  The Marshal looked preoccupied and vague, as always, but there was a brittle edge to the preoccupation if one knew what to look for.  He had no enthusiasm for discussing Heavenly politics or intrigue.  He barely talked to Kenren at all except for their usual drills and military matters.  Oh, papers were getting signed and orders were getting issued but dealing with Tenpo felt like talking to some wraith that wasn't all there.   

And there was that stunt he pulled just today…  

The redheaded general could still feel the adrenaline pumping in his blood stream as he remembered…

***

_Tschak! Tschak!  Tschak!_

The sound of trank darts rang across the forest as the Western Army went through the loosely organized enemy lines. 

"Yahh!"  Shouted the blue haired youkai as Tenpo savagely charged forward to shoot it full of tranquilizer.  There were a lot more where it came from.  Pointy eared and eager, they swarmed the West Army unit with sharp claws and deadly speed.

"Damned it, Tenpo.  Slow down a little will you."  Kenren was panting as he tried to catch up to his superior.

Tenpo didn't answer just continued to charge, hitting all comers with trank darts.  

_Tschak! Tschak!_ _Tschak!  Tschak! Tschak!  Tschak!_

After a moment of swearing, Kenren continued to follow his friend and superior.  He dared not slack since the others weren't able to catch up with the brunet.  

***

_Thank goodness, we managed to clear that area relatively quickly…_

While Kenren dreaded Tenpo's reaction when the man found out about him and Konzen, he didn't want to evade that responsibility by his friend's death.  He could still feel the coldness of his sweat when he realized that Tenpo wasn't going to stop charging into the enemy lines like that.  

_He seems a little more reckless than before…what is he trying to do?  Get himself killed?  Hellfire, he didn't seem like the type to go for suicide because of rejection…_

Kenren had thought that his friend was more of the type to go for murder than _that_.

_Maybe I should tell Konzen about this…_

It might make the blond more sympathetic towards the Tenpo. 

_Heck, maybe if I tell him like a man and stop evading him…he'd get mad at me and stop being suicidal…_

"Nothing… Kenren, I've been doing some thinking…"  Tenpo said, brushing aside the matter as if it had been just another boring party up in Heaven.

"Thinking in a combat situation?  Bullshit!  Are you trying to get yourself killed?"  Kenren demanded.

"Not particularly, no.  You always walk in the corridor outside Konzen's rooms at night, ne?"  There was speculation in Tenpo's tone that made Kenren acutely uncomfortable. 

_Has he figured out that I'm sleeping with Konzen and not with some twit from Kanzeon's train?_

"Aa."  Kenren replied tensely, waiting for the ax to fall.

"Did you see anyone else, walking down that corridor as well?"  Tenpo asked, his voice deceptively calm, one hand, however, tightened convulsively on a cup of sake.

Huh?  Oh… 

"No one."  Kenren drawled casually, trying hard not to betray any sort of emotion as he met those burning green orbs.

_No one but me that is…  He's scary! I wonder if Konzen's talked to him yet…_

"Oh."  Tenpo replied.  His eyes still held that look though the fire banked somewhat.  

What is he thinking, I wonder?  Was I obvious?  Did I give it away? "Tenpo…?"  Kenren asked, fighting to show only friendly concern.   "It's nothing."  Tenpo tossed the rest of his cup and reached for the sake flask again. The rest of the drinking session was held in silence. 

***

"Oh."  Tenpo said, knowing that he baffled his drinking companion.  

Let him be, I don't think I need to let him know how things stand between me and Konzen…

"Tenpo…?"  Kenren asked.  The curiosity Tenpo saw in the red eyes were unwanted, the concern, an annoyance.  The marshal knew he hadn't been behaving at all like himself but he couldn't find the energy to be concerned.   

I think that confirms my suspicions… 

There was no use explaining to the man his current situation.  At best, the redhead would find him laughable and at worst…   

At worst, find me pitiful.   He'd lose all respect for me and that would affect our professional relationship.  When you think of it is laughable that I lost to a mere child…but then did I have a hint even then?  Was that what I had been dreading when I refused to talk to Konzen immediately? 

Tenpo knew his hunches have a way of being true.  

_I'd been too eager to see it then…that time just after that night…_

***

He woke up with the _need_ to talk to Konzen.  He just had to speak to the blond god and let the man know the truth. 

He walked the corridors of the palace with refreshed vigor despite having barely slept the night before.  

Step by bounded step, he walked, his heart speeding up to match…then exceeding his steps.   Everything went by in a blur, quicker than he thought possible, quicker than he had anticipated; Konzen's door loomed in front of him like some forbidding cliff.  Suddenly, he knew what a wave from Down There might feel like as it was carried onward by the inevitable.  He felt his fragile hope and knew he couldn't...he just couldn't…    

***

Tenpo had turned on his heel and walked carefully and slowly to his quarters in defeat then. 

_And so it has come to this…_

Tenpo's hand tightened slightly on the thin porcelain cup he held.  He _had_ tried to talk to Konzen again, tried to offer what was in his heart days after for all the good it did him.  The man wouldn't hear him…

***

"What brings you here, Tenpo?"  Konzen asked, as he read through the stack of papers on his desk.  

Tenpo shifted his weight.  He never felt as nervous as he did now but…

_I just have to know…_

The marshal hadn't been able to muster the courage to ask before. 

_Though I had tried, at that time…_

He had put it off that morning because he had been too excitable, he excused.  

_I might've done something unforgivable…or so I thought…_

Those purple eyes stared at the papers with the same easy indifference they always did in his presence.  The inattention they showed, the lack of any sort of tension in Konzen, told Tenpo what he had been denying to himself. 

_Face it, Tenpo, you just didn't want to see his irrevocable answer…but, maybe that could be something to my advantage…  He does feel a lot more comfortable in my presence than anyone barring his aunt… _

"I just wanted to apologize for the day before—I know I shouldn't have tried to kiss you like that."

"It's forgiven." Konzen replied absently as he looked closer at one of the documents.

"But I'd like to say that—it might come as a shock to you—but I still want to be more than friends with you."  It came out in an uncertain rush.

"I already have a lover." The blond replied abruptly.  Purple eyes looked uncomfortably down.

_He's really shy, I guess…_

"Really, Konzen, I'm willing to wait for you to get comfortable with the idea.  I…really care for you…"

"I'm not making excuses.  I really do have a lover." Konzen interrupted, the blond was now glaring at the Marshal.  

And it's his right, I was being presumptuous…  I know there are a lot of people very much willing to have him… 

The brunet knew that Konzen had many admirers but the blond didn't have a lover yet.

Kanzeon's cold nephew finally choosing a favorite…  That would be all over Heaven…  Oh, he might have a prospect or two…but…no one bedded yet… 

"Oh come now…" Tenpo wheedled.

"Tenpo! This is getting insulting.  I HAVE A LOVER ALREADY.  Why don't you believe me?"

"Making that excuse wouldn't work on me, considering you've never told me about this supposed lover of yours.  I haven't heard any rumors either."  The words were almost exclaimed, incredulous as they were.

"Well, I can be discreet unlike you and your General."  Konzen said, in an exasperated huff.  

At that point, the blond refused to acknowledge Tenpo or the Marshal's attempts at conversation.   Belief slowly seeped into the brunet's mind.  Finally, it eroded the tentative hope that he held with such care.  Defeated, he finally left.

_A bottle of sake and a box of cigarettes sounds good just about now…_

***

It had taken Tenpo two days to sober up after the encounter.  When he could think, he had tried to figure out who had beaten him to the punch.  His careful investigation of the matter had turned up nothing except...

_For the rumor about Konzen and his young charge… He must be Konzen's lover, he's the only one…_

Goku was the only one who could legitimately stay with Konzen without arousing any suspicion.  The heretic boy shared the blond god's suites, no one would think it strange if he stayed over in the man's room.  

_Who else could it be?  The rumors must be true…  _

Tenpo was at a loss.  He didn't know quite what to do.   

_No?  You really don't?_

There were ways to get the heretic out of Heaven.  Politics were always uncertain and the boy was powerful.

A wildcard no one is certain about…  All I have to do is find a way to put him into the spotlight and the Powers That Be would get rid of him for me… And wait a minute, I recall that he's made friends with Nataku… Litouten's wary of Goku's powers and their effect on his position.  He could not happy about that relationship…  

Tenpo might not even have to move at all.  If the events played out the way they should, they would rid himself of his rival soon enough.  

And I have eternity to woo Konzen for myself soon enough… 

Suppressing a smirk, he took a long gulp out of his drink.  

All I have to do is make sure that nothing stops the progression…  

***

He had been a clever lad, though horribly naïve…not that he's changed all that much… 

Kanzeon reflected as she looked down on the youkai prince who fussed over Konzen.   The blond was surlier than ever.  Tenpo had purposely planned his conversation with Konzen about Nataku, planned it so that Goku would hear.  He had pretended ignorance over Goku's location during that faithful night.  Goku had challenged Litouten as he had hoped.  However, events careened out of control after that.  He hadn't expected Konzen to step forward and defend the boy.  

_To his credit, he never thought Konzen would risk his immortal standing…he never saw my nephew as a type to risk everything for anything much less _anyone_…  I was a bit surprised myself…though I knew that Konzen was getting a bit attached to the little itan as I planned…_

Konzen had rebelled to save his itan charge, Kenren took his side and Tenpo had no choice really.  

_He really loved Konzen…more than anything…   _

The rebellion was doomed to failure from the start.  Heaven was cruel place for those who expected it to change.  Kanzeon had been forced to attend their sentencing, knowing that there was nothing else she could have done.

_Heaven's ways are eternal, eternal politics and petty maneuverings…anyone who can't dance to the tune should just stay a wallflower…  It's a dance that grinds anyone into dust can't follow the steps… _ 

She saw them all standing in front of the God Emperor in the midst of a half dozen other officers in the army, their comrades at arms.  Poor Goku had not been present then.   He had been chained into his cave-prison summarily a day before since a dirty itan merited no trial in the eyes of Heaven.   Both Konzen and Goujun were dignified still and somehow untouchable.  Kenren was defiant and cocky.  Tenpo wore an inscrutable expression on his face, inscrutable except for the smoldering light in green eyes as they were sentenced to become mortal.  She knew then that Tenpo's unrequited feelings still burned brightly. 

_I never did know if he ever did find out about the truth about Konzen's lover…_

Three months after the rebels had been sentenced Down Below, a child had been born to Gyokumen Koushi.  The child had brown hair and eyes of his sire, the late Gyuma Ou, though the slender built of his mother.  Kanzeon noted this birth as she had the…others.    

_You have been searching for him since then…haven't you Tenpo?   Konzen had been reborn several times…but you stayed true to the memories you have just left behind…_

There were things that you never left in your last life no matter how many times you reincarnated, much less when you've just gone over the Wheel once.  

**~TBC~**

**Author's Notes:**

* This chapter was written to the tune of October Project's "Deep as You Go" and Celine Dion's "To Love You More" and it shows influences from both songs at least in a twisted way.

* This chapter is dedicated to all my reviewers especially to sf-san.


	4. Childhood mischief

**Part 3 - childhood mischief**

Hakkai was as quick to let Sanzo go as he was to sweep him up and just in time, too, the blond monk made a fair imitation of an affronted cat as he hissed and clawed out of the youkai's embrace. 

"Bastard! Did you think that I just sit here, taking this." Sanzo hissed. 

"No, but you looked so adorable that I couldn't help myself." 

Sanzo just snorted. 

"The garden and all the rooms inside this wing are only for your use." Hakkai explained cheerily. He sat on the bed as if nothing had happened. 

_What! Is he crazy?_

"I had the library here well stocked with every sort of book you seem to fancy. Daily newspapers, too, some of which will come from unconquered lands and even a few without propaganda in them." 

Sanzo could have sworn that Hakkai winked at him. It made him smile wryly before he felt the weight of the collar and was reminded of the situation they were in. 

"Do you think bribing me would tame me?" 

"No, your gun is in the bedside table drawer with your reading glasses, if it comforts you." Hakkai said, suddenly somber. 

Sanzo risked a look at the small table and there it was. 

_What is he playing at? I can't fight my way out of this prison but surely he can't underestimate me this much...to give me a chance to injure him?_

-o0o-

"No, your gun is in the bedside table drawer beside your reading glasses, if it comforts you." 

_For all the good that will do... _Was the implied thought in that, Sanzo could not fight a few thousand youkai all by himself and the blond knew it, too. He was stubborn but not altogether lacking in good sense. 

_It took the four of us to get this far and now...I've broken that, past repair..._

There was no really room for regrets on the path Hakkai had chosen. 

_If I had not..._

If he had not then he would not be sitting here, having finally a chance with the blond. A ghost of chance, that's true but still a chance that he wouldn't have had with Goku forever hovering around the blond. 

They remained like that for a while. 

-o0o-

Hakkai sat again on the bed. Sanzo had to admit the action had lowered his guard down by a bit. If not for the collar around his neck, Sanzo could almost pretend that they were the Journey still. 

_As if it could be that innocent again..._

Sanzo's mental voice uttered caustically as he sat on the other side of the bed. Such dangerous thoughts didn't even merit consideration. It had been week since he had first been imprisoned in this suite. 

_Though time had little meaning here..._

A day passed very much like the other. Dates were just empty numbers printed on the newspapers that came in every day. Sanzo spent most of that time exercising in the garden and reading. 

_I must wait for the proper time to strike..._

There was a fair chance that the youkai hordes will melt back into the population if Gyuma Ou was to be killed and he was in the right place to do just that. 

_I lack only the opportunity...and the weapons..._

It was a false hope, he knew. There were too many youkai in the place and he was still hobbled by the collar around his neck. 

_Though it could be that I am getting too used to this..._

The comfortable silence hung like an accusation in the air. 

"Aa. I know you might still harbor some resentment towards me but it would be best for us to resolve our differences, ne?" 

_Resentment would be the least of it... Best to resolve our differences, best for you perhaps... I will never be resigned to being your pet...NEVER!_

The blond monk continued to read as he fumed, pretending not to care. 

"You are my one and only mate after all." 

Sanzo snorted. 

"You might not believe it but it's true enough. I'd give you anything in my power to make you happy." 

"Drop dead." 

Hakkai chuckled. 

"You _are_ feeling better. You aren't my pet you know." 

Sanzo just snorted again. 

"I would release you if you accepted how the world works now. I won't have you endangering yourself for something impossible." 

_Damned! _He_ knows me too well..._

It was going to be hard to do anything at all with those watchful green eyes on him. 

"Afraid that your _human_ pet might jeopardize your position in court?" 

Hakkai laughed. That did not surprise Sanzo at all since the evasion on his part was so obvious. 

"All I care about my position is it keeps you safe. No more no less. I never was one to play with politics, I prefer military matters and books." 

"You always did." Sanzo asserted, surprising even himself. 

_Where did that come from?_

The words disturbed Sanzo deeply. He knew, somehow, they were true though he could not say what he knew it. The silence after was that of the same awkwardness a small child causes when he said some embarrassing truth to a guest in front of his parents. He had no way of knowing that the words had echoed down the deep spring of time to bubble up his lips at this moment... 

-o0o-

"This is why I don't like dabbling in politics." Tenpou said as he closed the door behind them in the drafty shack. They had gone in another direction from Kenren and Goku to confuse pursuit but it caught up with them at last. 

_I wish we don't need to join with them up again...in here I could almost pretend..._

It was a dangerous thing to do. The past month had been an enlightening one for the ex-Marshal. This was not the first time they had been alone nor it was the second but Konzen was the same as always. 

_Did you expect him to change? He sees me as his childhood friend...he always did..._

Tenpou knew that he should be contented with what he had with the blond and stop yearning for more but... 

_It's hard..._

"And your involvement with Kenren wasn't politics?" Konzen panted as he leaned on the opposing wall, sitting on a sack of something. He flushed rather becomingly as water and slush streamed down his neat blond ponytail. Tenpou had to fight the urge to kiss him. 

_He would not appreciate it...and would make him uncomfortable of my company..._

The gods controlled the weather of Heaven. The World Below was another matter. They had chosen to hide themselves in northern climes this time because the heavy clothes could conceal much. 

"That was my first attempt at politics. I'm just a straightforward military man for the most part. Besides, I knew what I was doing then. The military would brook no interference in their affairs even by someone as powerful as Litouten. They'd rebel first. But this--this was chancy. The position of Fighting God has always been outside of the military." 

"Why did you mix yourself up in this anyway?" Konzen snorted. 

"You know why." Tenpou said tiredly, forgetting himself enough to say it out. 

_Fool, it was your own choice to follow him--he didn't force you--and you saw this coming but chose not to say a word about it..._

Tenpou had more blame than most. Still, Konzen turned his head, having nothing to say to that. 

_He thinks it was his fault...but then I could hardly tell him otherwise..._

Suddenly, Tenpou winced as the adrenaline wore off. 

_I think I got a wound from that slash..._

Tenpou knew that one of their pursuers had managed to get a lucky stroke under his guard, he'd thought it was just a scratch. It certainly did not trouble him that much during their escape. 

_It must be a little more serious than that..._

There was a brief rustle of cloth as Tenpou took off his coat to assess the damage. The clot pulled free along with the thick material and the wound began to bleed freely. He gave it a cursory glance and decided that it merited some bandaging. He looked in one of his coat pockets and began to unwind a strip of cloth kept for that purpose in one of the coat pockets. 

"You're hurt!" Konzen exclaimed. 

"It's nothing, just a shallow cut." Tenpou said, taking perverse satisfaction in the concern in the blond's voice. The cut was truly shallow and partially cauterized. Still, it stung. 

_It's a good thing that gods never had to worry about infections and that we heal much faster than ordinary mortals... I just have to worry about bleeding dry...though there's no _only_ in that..._

He had read about those other things in books. 

"Tenpou, it's bleeding. It's not nothing..." Konzen protested as he came close, his face uncertain. 

_So innocent...you've never even seen blood before, have you Konzen? What did you think would happen when you rebelled against High Heaven all for the sake of one heretic child?_

It took a lifetime of self-control built over from staying in courts of Heaven for Tenpou to keep from saying it. 

_I don't need to remind him of his lover...we are alone together and his thoughts are on me...and that's all that matters..._

"I just need to bind it till it heals." He explained instead and started to bandage himself. 

"Let me do that. It was my fault anyway." Konzen said. 

Tenpou looked up startled, bandage forgotten on his hand. He didn't know that Konzen had noticed it at all. 

"You thought I wouldn't know. You got hurt because you tried to defend me." Konzen said as he took the bandage end from Tenpou and wound it over. 

He got the injury because an attacker trying to hamstring Konzen had distracted him. The blond god had been shooting with a tranquilizer gun and defending himself somewhat, still Konzen was not a match for trained warriors and there had been so many of them. __

"You are not a warrior Konzen, you do the best you can but even real warriors can't fight against overwhelming odds." 

_And for someone with little training you did rather well..._

-o0o-

"Damned, they've found us..." Tenpou swore as they ran through the village square, dodging darts and blades. 

_There are just too many of them for us to fight alone...Curse Litouten for dying in front of witnesses...and curse me for not thinking that Konzen would keep himself out of it..._

It had come to this. They, Konzen, Kenren and most of all Goku, were fugitives hunted by the Armies of Heaven and rather than stay still in Heaven to face their punishment, they had taken their lot here in the World Below. While there was no place in Heaven that could be hidden from the Emperor's wrath, here it was on even footing. 

_Or as even as it could be..._

At least it took the bastards long enough to locate them. Splitting the group had been a good idea. It certainly helped keep their pursuers off balanced and this way both trained fighters had only one non-combatant to worry about. 

_Though animal instinct seems to do well enough for Goku..._

Tenpou couldn't resist the jab against his absent rival as he tossed a _ki_ ball at a pursuer while shooting another with his tranquilizer gun. Things seemed to slow down for Tenpou as it was in every battle. Everything was always ever crystal clear and cold as if seen through a mountain stream. Every move and counter was laid out plainly in his sight. 

_Only five now..._

_Tschak! Hisss! Tschak!_

_No, three..._

Another gun whispered along his, claiming it's share of victims. 

_Tschak! Tschak! Tschak!_

Konzen had insisted on getting one of the lighter guns to help. It worried Tenpou a little. 

_If he was considered little threat to status quo and they would go easier in his sentencing..._

But Konzen had been adamant about doing his share of the fighting. His eyes sidled left to Konzen. It was so that he had dropped his guard ever so slightly. 

_Clang!_

The sword came down fast and Tenpou barely managed to raise his gun to parry the blow. He had very little warning except that it had stopped raining darts. He looked straight into mismatched eyes, purple and gold. 

_Shit! He must be the new Fighting God..._

Tenpou knew this heretic, of course, everyone in Heaven did. The man was Homura of the Flame, the itan in the Clan of the Emperor, the hidden disgrace. 

_He fights well enough..._

Tenpou tossed a ki ball and Homura backed away somewhat singed. They circled each other warily. Tenpou took a quick look at Konzen seeing he wasn't faring well. 

The white haired shadow that came with the office of Fighting God, Shion, was harrying Konzen with his whips. The blond god's clothing was torn in several places from the lash. 

_He's toying with him..._

A dart or two thudded quit close to the handle. 

_Ah, Konzen, you'll teach him to respect you yet..._

The whip was coming for another pass and Tenpou could see that it wasn't playing this time. 

_That blow could cripple Konzen..._

He threw a _ki_ ball and dodged to sideways to Konzen. 

_Not quite fast enough..._

As Tenpou had anticipated, Homura took advantage of his distraction to attack. The flaming sword grazed his arm, drawing blood. Before Homura could get out of range, he shot at the itan but this time the dart went home in the neck. The itan collapsed and Shion had to break off the attack to run to itan's side. The rain of darts began again. Tenpou pushed Konzen down as the darts whizzed a finger-length over their heads. He had the presence of mind to teleport them both to another location, this time a deserted forest clearing with a shack in it. 

-o0o-

So here there they were now, resting from that close call. 

"Hn! It was my damned fault. You wouldn't have gotten in the way of that slash if you were fighting with Kenren, you two would have gotten away without a scratch." Konzen snorted. 

Startled, Tenpou looked into the purple eyes. He didn't think that Konzen could have seen that. 

_Everything was happening so fast..._

What had made Tenpou so good a strategist was that he could keep track of most events in the battlefield. He never thought that Konzen would have noticed, busy as the blond was with Shion. 

_Hell, Kenren would have had concentrated on his own battles and leave me to take care of mine..._

"You don't think I was as much a fool as that. Didn't you?" The blond fussed at the bandage, refusing to meet Tenpou's gaze. 

"Why didn't you go for the military, Konzen?" Tenpou moved forward to get a better look at the blond. 

Konzen looked up so fast they nearly bumped noses. [1] 

"What do you mean by that?" Purple eyes were truly puzzled by Tenpou's question. 

_Amazing...he doesn't know... A pity about his position, he could have gotten far in the military..._

Tenpou himself had taken his childhood friend for granted as a soft bureaucrat, someone who'd been born and bred for the endless round of red tape in Heaven. He felt somewhat ashamed that he'd never thought there was more to Konzen than that. 

_This is a side of him I've never seen even when we had been children... _

-o0o-

"You don't think I was as much a fool as that. Didn't you?" Konzen refused to look directly into the green eyes. 

_I got you into this...this mess..._

Tenpou had said as much before he got himself under control. His old playmate had some affection for Goku but that alone would not have let the cautious Tenpou Gensui into politics outside the military. 

_And I caused this directly...by being in the line of fire..._

Konzen knew that what he had said was true that if Tenpou had been with Kenren instead of him... 

_He wouldn't have worried so much..._

Part of it was the green eyed god's affection for Konzen, the other part of it was concern for his inexperience in battle. He knew that the latter concern had some merit. 

_I had no lessons in strategy or tactics...no practice in shooting a gun or sword fighting...though the gun felt natural in my hand...and I did manage to hit some of the targets..._

So maybe Tenpou shouldn't worry so much about him but still... 

"Why didn't you go for the military, Konzen?" It was his turn to be startled. He looked up not knowing that Tenpou had moved, his face nearly colliding with the other's. 

_I was just thinking he shouldn't underestimate me..._

"What do you mean by that?" 

_He can't mean what he I think he just said..._

Konzen forgot his earlier thoughts of self-sufficiency at those words. He had been raised to be the Old Hag's assistant for as long as he could remember. The military dealt with matters Down Below and had nothing to do at all with him. The filth and the earthiness of it all was not something he had been raised to deal with. 

_Like I told you that other time...but...that is what I'm doing now, isn't it?_

Heaven was barred to him now for defending Goku. He had brought down so many with him in upholding his charge. 

_Funny, I got you into this, Tenpou...when it was you who kept getting us into trouble when we were striplings... You can almost say it was karma if it wasn't so much more serious... This isn't at all like camping out with the Old Hag's tablecloth for a tent out in the palace gardens when we could run back in when the occasional spring shower comes down... _[2] 

They had been both about ten at that time... 

-o0o-

"Why are we doing this again?" Konzen asked as he rearranged the couch cushions yet again to find a more restful position. It was the fourth time he'd ask the question for the night. 

They had sneaked away from their rooms as soon as their nannies had left them tucked in their beds into this little nest they had made of some unused cushions and a tablecloth from the Palace. 

"Because we're pretending that we're soldiers Down Below. They make tents to sleep in like this." 

"You'll never have to do this in the Army of Heaven, don't you?" 

"Yes, we do. When we're running an offensive against the demons, we might not have the time to get back here to sleep." 

"That's good but I don't know why _I _have to stay with you... I don't need to camp out and this seems so...dirty..." Konzen shifted again on the cushions. 

"Aren't you even curious?" Tenpou asked. 

"Umm...yes... But this is so uncomfortable..." It was rather stuffy under the 'tent'. They had tied a curtain tie to two young trees for support so the roof of the tent was rather low. The space between the trees were barely adequate for them to lie down with foot or so to spare. 

"And are you going to let a little dirt and discomfort stop you?" 

"Well, I guess not." Konzen subsided as always. He was a retiring sort preferring quiet solitude and meditation when he was not buried in his studies. Tenpou was the only one of the other Heavenly children he played with and only because his Aunt had forcibly introduced them. 

Tenpou was of the military command caste, destined to be one of the high officers of Heaven's Armies. Konzen found out soon to his disadvantage that the other child's solemn face hid an adventurous and commanding nature. 

_I know I'm going to regret this..._

It was not the first time he'd follow Tenpou into one sort of mischief or the other. He knew well what would happen. 

_Like that time he asked me if I wanted to play Down Below monkeys with him, how our nannies shrieked when we had clambered up the cabinets... Or the time we painted ourselves like savages from Down Below..._

Be that as it may, Konzen hadn't yet learned to say his friend 'no' then. 

-o0o-

And of course Konzen did regret it, it took three nights for them to be discovered. It had rained that night and they got soaked under the sheet. 

_Since it wasn't tent material..._

They had stumbled in quite soaked and making a racket. 

_The sort that can't be ignored...somewhat like now... We made so much noise in Court and offended the Powers That Be..._

Though this time the consequences were more disastrous than a scolding for best cushions ruined. 

_I think this adventure is probably the last we'd ever be on... I wouldn't be surprised if they sentence us outright to oblivion for this..._

Suddenly, Konzen was aware of Tenpou's face still so close to him, perhaps too aware. The man's breath touched his neck with feathery fingers making him shiver. 

_Does he...? What..._

His thoughts fell into an incoherent jumble. 

_Though it could be the chill..._

Without the distraction of enemies, the chill in the air was starting to creep into Konzen's bones. He shivered again. 

"I think that we should spread our cloaks over each and sleep together for warmth." Tenpou said finally and the moment passed much to Konzen's relief. 

_What was that about anyway?_

-o0o-

_What was that about?_

Hakkai knew that it was too much to ask that Sanzo understand his position but at that moment... 

_At that moment...it seemed as if he did in a way... And that he believed..._

It was _only_ truth. That he would do anything to be with Sanzo was a given, the love he felt for the blond was beyond the petty rules of the world. He would lie, steal or even kill, to get the man. Exchanging weaseling words and dancing the courtly dance seemed small prices to pay. 

_Maybe, I don't have that a long wait, after all..._

"What are you staring at?" Sanzo snapped, standing up to look over the newspaper rack. The odd moment of deja vu seemingly forgotten. 

Hakkai had let his gaze drift back to the monk's face in his preoccupation. 

_Or maybe not..._

He chuckled silently to himself. 

_Well...he is worth the wait..._

**-TBC-**

**Author's Notes:**

[1] Tenpou kiss him already, damned it! Do you need a sign from Heaven? And Kanzeon-sama, don't answer that...this is the wrong story for that... Somewhere, snickering could be heard. 

[2] Me and my sibs used to 'play tent' with the cushions from the living room set. We had tall coffee table with green-glazed ceramic elephants 'legs' in the living room with a carpet underneath it for the tent. We'd pull off the cushions and put them on the carpet and hide under the table. 

Next chapter will have the cushions revisited (Because I'm fond of them!) Any violent reactions? I'm being very liberal with canon here...


	5. Death, taxes and politics

**Unsaid Oaths**  
SAIYUKI FANFICTION

**Part 4 - Death, taxes and politics...**

Gyokumen Koushi toyed at the peaches in the bowl, deciding they were still too green for her taste. Ah well, it was too early in the season anyway for them to ripen properly. She looked over to her son, sitting quietly by her chair as he always did for an hour before going about his business. He had brought the peaches in with some grapes knowing she liked the fruit. She was well satisfied at what she saw. The man had faults she would admit, his attachment to a certain blond human, the biggest of them, but overall, he turned out rather well. 

_He's even better than Lirin, that worthless girl..._

She had been quite disappointed at how his twin had turned out. Lirin might be strong but the girl had a child's mind and simplicity. 

_She could only plot on one level...whereas Raz--Hakkai, must remember that he prefers that name now--can do so on several levels...just like his dear mother..._1 

Besides, Lirin was a traitor of the worse way, leaving her poor mother to fawn upon that bitch Rasetsuyo. 

_She has not even come here since her father has been resurrected...As all of my servants, either gone off to dear Gyuma service or to toadying to that bitch Rasetsuyo...traitors all of them... Never mind...Hakkai is all I need..._

Hakkai held the only hope she had left, that all her plotting came to this infuriated her but then her son was no mean pawn himself. 

_Several youkai lords are very much impressed with him and strength... Lord Gakuo's faction seems to favor him more than they do Kougaiji...so has Wulei's..._

__

There were a minority that was true but their interest can be cultivated. 

__

_If only he would get rid of that human..._

It would be much easier to get allies, if he did. Hakkai was an unknown in court. He was no human sympathizer like Kougaiji but it would take some time before the court would learn of it. It had been two hundred years since she had sent him to spy upon the humans and before that, he had been happy enough with commanding his mother's troops. Now most of those troops were gone, killed by Homura and his goons. 

_Which reminds me... Several youkai clans have lost their best warriors to humans in the days when we were trying to get the Sutras...and to the Sanzo-ikkou, of course..._

The minor matter of Sanzo had bothered her until a solution had come to her in a flash of insight. _It would not be so bad to welcome the man into the family... He's strong and stubborn, if he could be persuaded into using those traits to our advantage... He had been a good leader, if a strange one, he'd have led that ragtag group of his to victory without R--Hakkai's--interference... Most youkai nobility will appreciate the irony of it! _

The natural step towards that would be to turn the man into a youkai. _That would eliminate any racial loyalty he would feel... _

And so, she would put her plan into action. 

_And when he's done the deed then maybe Gyuma will acknowledge him and give him the position of Heir as he deserves..._

Then he would displace Rasetsuyo's son as his mother would displace Rasetsuyo as Empress. 

_And that would be my greatest victory of all..._

Her plans were coming into fruition. Like the peaches in the bowl, she could see the first promise of ripeness in them. Everyday, her son's fame was growing and everyday, she managed to convince her dear Gyuma that he was a worthy son... 

_Worthier than that bitch's get... Soon...and once they fall out of favor...I'll rid myself of them...and that is even sweeter...and Gyuma and Lirin will come back to me..._

Much sweeter than the peaches when they have fully ripened... 

-o0o-

"The seventh battalion has left again to comb the countryside. Your father is clamoring again for human flesh to eat. It's so tedious...when there is something so tantalizingly close at hand." 

Hakkai wasn't the least fooled by the relaxed way Gyokumen Koushi addressed him. 

_She's going to go for the kill this time, I think..._

It was no secret that the woman disapproved of Sanzo's place in his harem. 

_Or at least as disapproving as she could be..._

Privately, the green-eyed youkai thought that his mother was a bit mad. Her moods often swung wildly and tended towards unusual directions when it came to her enemies. He just smiled his pleasant smile and ignored the blatant innuendo. Nothing was to be gained by being forward at this time. 

_Everything in their proper time and season and now is not the time for rebellion, not just yet..._

"You should keep a close watch on your pet and make sure he doesn't get loose." 

"Aa, Mother." 

"You still have that vial you...liberated...from those uppity _humans_, don't you?" Gyokumen Koushi said. 

_Ah, so we get to the point of this conversation..._

Hakkai knew well enough that his mother would get to that vial sooner or later. The woman thought herself cunning and devious but she was sadly ever so predictable. 

_I've met commoners who could surprise me..._

"Aa, Mother." Hakkai said brightly, knowing that his mother liked to be addressed so. It flattered the old witch well enough. 

Sure enough the blow had fallen where he had known it would. 

"Why don't you use it? It would take care of all...the problems..." 

_Ah there it is... _

"Aa, Mother. In my own time..." Hakkai smiled blandly and pleasantly. 

"But..." _Oh no, you don't. I won't lose my Sanzo because of your impatience... _

"In my own time and terms." 

"I suppose you know what's best, but don't wait too long..." 

The implied threat didn't faze Hakkai. He was the only one his mother could rely upon now that Gyuma Ou was awake. Her pet human Nii Jieni had been taken into the protected fold of his father for his genius as was the assistant girl. They would easily betray her to save their own hides. Hakkai saw her desperation despite her pretense of control. 

_She is like a wolf, gaunt and starving in the winter famine... Even the lords who dislike Kougaiji's moderate stance are too wary of her; they've barely approach me as it is since I seem to be in her good graces... _

__

He seriously considered of leaving her so that he could seek better allies for his plans but... 

_It would not do to let Mother to become too desperate since it would rouse her out of her normal indolence and she can be cunning...in a very twisted way..._

He had no desire to spend time figuring out what she was up to when he had to concentrate his energies on Sanzo. 

_He needs careful handling and much time to get accustomed to the new world order..._

Hakkai himself needed time to get accustomed to his kin and his place amongst them. He had been long away. 

_Spying amongst the humans...Not that I need to get used to some things..._

Hakkai had no intention of staying tied to his mother's skirts or follow all the rules laid down by his father. He intended to make his place in this new order truly _his_. He was so deep into his plans for the future that he almost missed his mother's next words. 

"Your father bade me to tell you to present yourself at afternoon court...I hope you know how important it is for you to make yourself presentable. This could be what we've been waiting for..." 

_You are waiting for mother..._

But it will probably not the way you want it to go. 

_Not in any way at all the way you want it to... _

__

_Poor mother..._

Hakkai didn't have spies as his brother or mother did but he knew enough to use his own eyes. His lips curved into an ironic smile. 

"I will." 

-o0o-

"I have heard so much of your exploits from your mother, Razan, my son. How it was your efforts that led to my resurrection, rather than your brother's." Gyuma Ou's sibilant tone held little pride in it. 

_Most likely from mother..._

The afternoon court was called in the throne room. Hakkai sat in a low chair off the dais, his customary place, of a minor prince not much higher in placement than most of the youkai lords. He liked it that way since it gave him a full view of the throne up on the dais and other chairs. He could see his mother on the left side of the throne and Rasetsuyo sat on the other side, the side of the proper wife. Her eyes fairly glowed with intensity. Rasetsuyo wore her serenity like a cloak. His father glared at him as if to read his intent. 

"Hakkai, if you please father, and my brother did all he could. It was just my good fortune to be in the proper place to do better." Hakkai said brightly, looking into the glowering green eyes without fear. 

His words seemed to calm his father, a new light of calculation entered those eyes. 

_Good..._

"So...Hakkai...since you have proven your worth on the field. I would give you a position most worthy of _your_ talents..." 

The triumph in his mother's expression was so apparent that Hakkai had to smile to himself. 

_If it was a sound we would all be deafened by it..._

"...I name you as the Marshal of my Armies, second only to your brother who is my Heir." 

The triumph in Gyokumen Koushi's eyes was replaced with rage. 

_Second...as you have always been mother? I can see that you are barely tolerated in court and that is no wonder... If you did not bear your lord a pair of twins, I have no doubt you had been cast aside with relief... _

Servant gossip said that her charms vanished come morning and her caprice made his father flee from her. 

_I doubt it was that immediate...mother was probably devious enough to hide the more...ugly...sides of her character before they knew she was pregnant... _

"This is quite an honor, father, I accept." Hakkai bowed low, hiding the small smile of satisfaction from his mother. It was what he'd expected. 

_Everyone always favored Rasetsuyo and her son...and no wonder..._

No one in their right mind would favor Gyukomen Koushi over the sweet Rasetsuyo. 

_Mother has always been...unreliable...even Lirin has turned away from her..._

His stay in the human world had taught her many things. 

_Mother may pretend to care for us but she only thinks of her place and possibly father..._

He wouldn't mind dancing attendance in Rasetsuyo's court rather than his mother but his plan denied it. 

"Kougaiji, you and your brother should come to an understanding as you will be working together." Gyuma Ou voice boomed in an unmistakable order. 

Kougaiji nodded though he looked like he'd rather spend some time in the snake pit with the cobras. 

"Yes, father. Shall we discuss matters in private, brother?" Hakkai said, rising as he did so from the low chair he sat on. 

_And maybe I can ease his mind a little..._

"I would be happy to but I have some business with the Lord of Shoikan for some days." Kougaiji backpedaled verbally. Wariness was plain in the indigo eyes. 

_Or maybe not..._

It would not do to rush such things. Hakkai had yet to gauge the situation properly. 

"Aa, at your convenience." 

_Till you run of petty excuses then or I get tired of them, actually..._

-o0o-

"Sanzo?" Hakkai asked concerned that the monk hadn't attacked him with an irascible comment since he entered the suite. The monk had become a lot more active lately, pacing the suite like a feral cat, hijacking chairs or climbing the walls to peer at the guards around the compound. 

_Maybe I should detail one of the other eunuchs to look after him? Ekisu is too shy and submissive to keep up with him...it must be wearing off..._

Sanzo had been considerably more active these past few days. It was reassuring that the blond regain his spirit but it was getting harder and harder to keep the appearance of host and guest rather than jailor and prisoner. 

_Maybe I should give him something more to do... maybe combat practice with the guards? But they might not be able to control themselves...and that might break the spell all that quicker...or maybe I should..._

No, that method was not an option. 

_It might cause irreversible damage..._

There were ways to keep a human pliable but such things cannot be used without serious price. 

_I've already pushed it more than I would like..._

The collars and the spells on them were as far as he would allow, if his parents or any of the court lackeys did not like it, tough on them. Hakkai had no intention of causing permanent damage to Sanzo. 

"Sanzo, you know better than to take a bath since I always visit at this hour...unless you want me to join you?" Hakkai drawled rather naughtily. He wouldn't really, the relationship was just too new and to fragile for that but it didn't stop him from teasing Sanzo. _It would get him used to the idea..._

"Or are you trying to play hide and seek? Maybe pounce on me while I'm not looking?" Hakkai was getting a bit worried now. It wasn't like Sanzo to take so long before trying to attack him with words. 

_Maybe letting him attack me physically would be a better idea...but I don't trust my reflexes..._

The time he'd spent with the Sanzo-ikkou had sharpened them so that he did not react very well even to people surprising him by accident. _It would be a really bad idea..._

He loved Sanzo too much to risk hurting the blond, hence the little deception with the collar. 

"Sanzo...?" Hakkai was feeling a little worried now. _What if he found a way around the wards around the door?_

It was not safe for humans to walk the corridors, though the collar would probably protect Sanzo from being killed out of hand. It would bring another danger all together, purposeful assassination in the hands of his enemies. 

_I wouldn't put it past some of the lords..._

Some factions would find it convenient to dispose of the "Second Prince's human pet". It was just part of the scheming at court. It was not only his mother had been eying him for the throne. 

_The least temperate of the lot of them...and they are making the other side very nervous... _

The factions favoring Kougaiji would gladly kill Sanzo for spite. The death of a human pet would not be a sufficient reason to start a feud. _Not in the eyes of my sire, at any rate..._

And the other factions might do it to start tension and to bring Hakkai to the edge. Keeping a human pet was something they understood, there was pride wound up in it and pride in their eyes was enough of a reason for Gyokumen Koushi's son to battle. 

__

_Everyone expects me to be ambitious..."That's why he went over to our side." They think they all know me so well... _

It was amusing in its own pitiful way but such musings were for another day. _Maybe I should call for Ekisu...or... _

Hakkai was seriously considering calling the guards to help in the search when he saw a familiar figures crumpled on the floor and...2 _Blood...so much of it..._

"Sanzo!" 

-o0o-

"I should have told you that that collar was made from a very strong alloy." Hakkai checked the bandages on Sanzo's chest where the bullet had grazed the monk. _Thank the gods, that it bounced back to the floor instead of... _

Hakkai couldn't finish that statement. His heart had nearly stopped when he'd seen Sanzo so still on the floor. The blast had knocked the monk unconscious and the wound had bled, making it look worse than it was. _I've certainly seen him in worse but...but...I thought for a moment that he...he might have..._

Sanzo had lost everything he was fighting for, after all. 

_And even then the bleeding could have killed him, he's too pale as it is, much paler than usual... _

__

It worried Hakkai. 

__

_Too close...I should have known that that docility spell the mages put in the collar wouldn't last a month... I thought I had more time... Damned!_

He should have known that no weak spell could hold Sanzo's will for too long. The man was strong willed and as much a fighter as they came. 

_I'll just have to advance my timetable...a little..._

"Idiot." 

"I could say the same to you." Hakkai chirped. 

"Moron." 

"Aa." 

"You are _crazy_." 

"And someone who's willing to shoot a collar so close to his head is...?" The exchange comforted the green-eyed youkai since it was a familiar thing. Sanzo had always been a grouchy bear of a companion, driven by the need to get the Sutra at all costs. Hakkai didn't understand the drive but he admired it as he did everything about the monk. _That much drive not even the collar could contain... He is worth having...everything about him is perfect..._

Sanzo was _the one_. Hakkai had always been easygoing. He had gone on to listen to his mother's ambition with only half an ear. The military was his passion, the one thing he found important. _Before you that is...and I'm not about to let you get away..._

The devotion he had felt for the monk was beyond anything he'd ever experienced and he was not about to let the man go _ever_. 

"Bastard, why don't you get this over with and kill me now? I won't stay put and be your pet." The fire in the purple eyes flared despite the loss of blood. 

"I don't expect you to, and you're not a pet no matter what anyone says." The conversation was getting too serious for words. _Too soon...it's too soon for this..._

But the words refused to be stopped. 

"Really, then why do you have me wearing this collar?" 

Hakkai could almost see the cunning in the angry question. _Oh no, you don't..._

"To keep you safe." 

-o0o-

"I don't expect you to, and you're not a pet no matter what anyone says." _He has to prove the statement..._

Sanzo knew an opening when he saw one. He pounced into the breach. 

"Really, then why do you have me wearing this collar?" 

"To keep you safe." 

The answer disappointed him and that made him angry. 

_Why am I disappointed? It's not as if I have any right to expect otherwise... He's my enemy and the cause of all this humiliation..._

"I'm sorry you feel that way but...you will see..." Hakkai said, smiling so sweetly that Sanzo doubted the youkai sanity right there. 

"You are out of your fucking mind." The words were heartfelt this time. 

-o0o-

"You are out of your fucking mind." 

Hakkai did not blame the monk for thinking so. Sanzo did not know of his plan or how serious he was about...well, about everything... 

_Serious as death...and it's just that...my death, if I fail...and not a pleasant a death it is, too... Still, he should trust me..._

Unexpectedly, that distrust hurt, but what else was he could he do but smile? He certainly could not bring the trust back instantly. He betrayed Sanzo so he could have his chance he was not going to stop now. 

"Maybe, that is so." 

_You will just have to see...Sanzo..._

Hakkai knew that the step he was going to take was irrevocable from this point on. 

_I need to talk to Kougaiji, if I have to pin him to the wall to do it..._

**-TBC-**

**Author's Notes:**

1 Silrayn sputters and turns into a wolfy puppy. She continues to sputter, sounding peculiarly like a puppy choking on a bone. 

"There, there, Mama!"Ayan-kitsune butts his furry head onto Silrayn's with enough force to knock Silrayn flat. 

Silrayn is swirly-eyed. 

2 The first version of this sentence went: 

Hakkai was seriously considering calling the guards to help in the search when he saw a familiar leather-clad figure crumpled on the ground. 

"I didn't know you went into bondage, Sanzo." Hakkai pops out a whip. 

Bop-edited to the sound of Gin Blossoms' "Hey Jealousy", I adore 80's music, don't you? 


End file.
